One of the largest rescue operations on record in the UK took place on Wednesday
9 January 2007 when 111 horses, ponies and donkeys were removed from Spindels Farm near Amersham, Buckinghamshire. 31 horses were found dead and decomposing; three others were put down on the advice of vets.

The operation was coordinated by Thames Valley Police, Trading Standards and
the RSPCA with help from the Horse Trust, the International League for the Protection of Horses (ILPH), Redwings and The Blue
Cross. The situation has been described as shocking, horrific and beyond comprehension by all involved.

Now in the safe care of the ILPH

Thames Valley Police report that James Gray has been charged with criminal damage and assault on a police officer. He was due in court on
14 January; however the case has been adjourned.

He is now due to appear at Aylesbury Magistrates' Court on 4 February at 10am.

The case was adjourned following the request by Mr Gray and this was granted
by the court. Mr Gray is currently under investigation for offences under the Animal Welfare Act.

A spokesman for Buckinghamshire Trading Standards said an investigation into what
was discovered at Spindles Farm would be "very quick".

The 111 equines are recuperating with the help of horse charities across the
country.However this huge number of equines puts enormous pressure on the charities
and they are appealing for donations and help.

Operation Esther was launched after a Horse and Hound Online Member (Michelle
Mortimer) placed a plea on the site’s forum for people to give up a luxury and donate that money to the charities caring
for the horses and ponies rescued. Within a matter of hours, Michelle’s
appeal became a nationwide movement that has gone from strength to strength as the days have passed. It was named Operation Esther after the youngest donkey rescued. Esther
and her mum Mary were taken to Redwings Horse Sanctuary in Norfolk, where she was given her name.

Operation Esther’s mission is to gather together donations of money,
feed, bedding and other essential items so that these may be transported to the charities concerned on Convoy Day, 26th January
2008.

Operation Esther is a voluntary organisation set up to help Redwings Horse
Sanctuary, The International League for the Protection of Horses (ILPH) and The Horse Trust. None
of the charities are directly involved with Operation Esther but they have expressed heartfelt thanks and appreciation for
the efforts of everyone taking part.

Operation Esther has really taken off, explains Michelle Mortimer: “Everybody
involved with Operation Esther and the collection of donations has really taken it to their hearts and we are all very grateful.
It is brilliant to be able to help the charities who took in not only these equines,
but take in rescued horses, ponies and donkeys all year round.”

There are now numerous collection points across the UK and details of those
can be found on the relevant page of the Operation Esther website.

Spurred on by the shocking, recent horse welfare case in Amersham, International
League for the Protection of Horses’ (ILPH) Deputy Chief Executive Tony Tyler is donning his running shoes to take part
in the Edinburgh Marathon in aid of the ILPH.

“Having worked at the ILPH for the past 8 years, I have seen some horrendous
welfare cases brought into our Centres,” says Tony.

“The most recent one at Spindles Farm, Amersham has shocked all of us. The
ILPH took in 11 of these horses and it will cost many thousands of pounds to rehabilitate and care for them over the next
year alone. Sadly this is not the isolated incident people might think. We have other multiple cases being investigated and
dealt with throughout the year.

“I have decided to run this year's Edinburgh Marathon to raise funds to help
ensure the ILPH is able to continue its vital work. I am training hard to get ready for the 26.2 mile course and would welcome
any sponsorship, however small!”

The Edinburgh Marathon takes place on Sunday 25th May 2008. Anyone wishing to sponsor
Tony can do so securely online at www.justgiving.com/tonytyler

In a separate initiative The British Horse Society would like to gather more information
regarding the scale of the problem of dog attacks following a number of reports of poorly controlled dogs interacting negatively
with horses made to its Access and Safety departments.

Director of Access Safety and Welfare, Mark Weston, said: "We would encourage anyone
who has suffered as the result of a dog attack to fill in the form on our website, so that we can gauge how widespread this
problem is."

The information gathered by the survey will form the basis of a guidance note and,
if dog attacks are a large-scale issue, an awareness campaign.

A list of organisations, consultees and Pledges of Support will be made available
on the NEWC website when the consultation is complete.

About NEWC

The National Equine Welfare Council is made up of 60
equine welfare organisations including Animal Health Trust, British Horse Society, Blue Cross, Donkey Sanctuary, The Horse
Trust, International League for the Protection of Horses, National Pony Society, Redwings Horse Sanctuary & RSPCA.

The President is Dr Harry Greenway with Vice Presidents
Dr Elisabeth Svendsen and Mrs Lesley Barwise-Munro.The Chairman is Martin
Taggart.

A 31-year-old New Forest mare is lucky to be alive after lying trapped in a
ditch for a number of hours.

Fire crews from Basingstoke and Eastleigh fire stations were called to reports
of a large horse trapped in a deep ditch just before midday on Saturday, January 12.

They arrived at the farm in Goddards Lane, Sherfield-on-Loddon, to find a 13.2
hand, 350 kg, New Forest mare, called Velvet, exhausted and lying in a cold stream.

Rural Safety Officer Anton Phillips was also called to attend. Watch
Manager Phillips said: "It appears that Velvet may have stumbled through a hedge and fell five to six feet into the ditch,
which has a stream running through it. It was initially thought that she may have broken her pelvis, but further examination
revealed she hadn't."

Fire crews then set about rigging up a harness and using a tele-handler managed
to ease the ageing horse out of the water.

Watch Manager Phillips added, "Velvet was beginning to suffer from hypothermia
and as soon as she was out we covered her in blankets to keep her warm. Soon she was back on her feet once again. When you
consider that in human terms, Velvet is about 80 years old, this was an excellent result."

Watch Manager Anton Phillips is one of three Animal Rescue Advisers who work
for Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service.The specialist team are leading the way
in animal rescue work in the UK with other fire and rescue service’s learning from their example.

At present the Hampshire Animal Rescue Team is made up of three advisers, who
assist at roughly 300 incidents a year.But their role is not solely responding
to incidents they are also heavily involved in education and the development of new rescue techniques and promoting animal
welfare.

∑Guidelines to help the emergency services cope better with equine incidents were launched in May 2007.

∑The guidelines aim to ensure that any horse involved in an accident receives proper care as quickly as possible. They
cover everything from how a 999 call should be dealt with to advice on identifying horses and coping with a large animal in
an incident.

∑An Emergency Services Protocol Fund has also been set up by the BHS and BEVA, to help minimise delays for injured horses
receiving veterinary care when their owners cannot be traced. The fund will also pay for rescue training and specialist lifting
and rescue equipment for the emergency services.

The HSE’s initiaitive, to promote
that the sensible management of risks protects people from real harm and suffering, but avoids bureaucratic back covering,
has taken a further step forward.HSE is running a "Myth of the Month"
campaign aimed at highlighting some of the more popular stories of health and safety, which do not actually represent the
law.

A Bill to amend the Animals Act 1971 to limit strict liability for
damage done by animals

FEI Eventing Safety Forum

Copenhagen, Denmark.

19 January 2008

To discuss safety across the sport.

National bodies from all eventing nations, including the British Equestrian
Federation (BEF), will be invited to attend and make presentations on safety, along with course-designers, trainers, riders,
officials, equipment manufacturers and vets.

On May 28th, The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies will be hosting a meeting
of veterinary specialists from all over the world to discuss recent scientific advances in the development of preventative
measures for Strangles.

Strangles is the most commonly diagnosed infectious disease of horses worldwide.
However, the end may be in sight, as the Animal Health Trust (AHT) has teamed up with the British Horse Society to develop
a blood test and vaccine, to test for and prevent respectively, the disease. The campaign has a £250,000 target, and has already
managed to raise £100,000.

The conference, to be held in the School at the University of Edinburgh, will comprise
of a series of talks from various specialists from all over the world, including four of the research team from the AHT: Andrew
Waller, Jeremy Kemp-Symonds, Richard Newton and ZoŽ Mitchell.

Tickets for this conference, which includes lunch and coffee, are £65. Please follow
the link below for further information, the day’s programme and booking form to ensure you get your place!

You can also follow the links from the Science section of the AHT website for more information on the disease itself and the work we are doing towards the development of
the vaccine.

Related Information

About strangles - When a horse contracts the disease,
it initially loses its energy and appetite. Swelling and abscesses occur around the throat. The horse then finds it hard to
breathe and swallow – as it is being strangled (hence the name Strangles). When the abscesses rupture, in some cases
other horses can be infected. If the abscesses spread to other parts of the horse's body, the condition is usually fatal.See the strangles information leaflet www.aht.org.uk/strangles.org/strangle_leaflet.pdfand the strangles campaign websitewww.strangles.org/

The Animal HealthTrust - The AHT is a charity dedicated
to improving the health of dogs, cats and horses by addressing the problems of disease and injury. It achieves this by providing
specialist clinical services for animals in need and advancing veterinary science. Even if your horse or pet has never been
treated directly by the AHT, it will have benefited from the results of the Trust’s work.See www.aht.org.uk

The British Horse Society - the UK's biggest horse
charity with a membership of more than 100,000, held a Strangles Awareness Week from 15-21 May last year (2006), and BHS Scotland
has been lobbying hard in the Scottish Parliament for new measures to help to slow the spread of Strangles in Scotland.
Seewww.bhs.org.uk

Related Reports

Patchetts Equestrian Centre in Hertfordshire reopened
on 11 July following a closure of four weeks after a horse in livery at the yard was diagnosed with strangles on 12 June.

An online survey carried out for Strangles Awareness
Week (14 – 20 May) has revealed that strangles is "widespread throughout the UK" but knowledge of the disease and yard
policies to help prevent it is "lacking".

∑Health
and Safety Guidance for Inspections of Horse Riding Establishments and Livery Yards

Published in May 2006, this document
sets out current good practice for environmental health practitioners; licensing officers; vets and animal wardens and also
provides a useful tool for both owners and managers of horse riding establishments and livery yards.

Supported by the riding industry’s
major stakeholders, the guidance aims to fill a gap in existing literature and also provides useful checklists necessary to
minimise the risk associated with such premises.

It recognises the need to strike a
practical balance to reduce hazards without hindering the sustainability of the riding industry.

Safety
with Horses is a cost effective, award winning equine health and safety training programme, leading to an accredited Vocational
Qualification.

The Level
2 programme is suitable for all those involved in any equine related activity including full or part-time students, clients,
trainees, school work placements as well as those employed working with horses.

Delivered
in partnership with the Health and Safety Executive, Workplace Health Connect is a government funded service providing confidential,
practical and free advice to small businesses on workplace health and safety, management of sickness absence and return to
work issues.